//------------------------------//
// Chapter 1 - Encounter [OUTDATED] 
// Story: The Not-So Lonesome Road 
// by Bill the Storyteller 
//------------------------------//

"...I've got spurs, that Jingle, Jangle, Jingle (Jingle Jangle)..."

I awoken to the sound of my Pip-Boy turning on to Radio New Vegas, which was blaring out "Jingle, Jangle, Jingle". The clock on my Pip-Boy read 8:30 a.m. and it was time to get up, take a bath, and cook up breakfast for everyone. 

Rex was already awake when I had awoken and he greeted me by happily licking my face. I chuckled and gently pulled him away from me. "Alright, alright, Rex, I'm awake."

He jumped off the bed while I dressed into my bathrobes and turned off my Pip-Boy radio. "Let me get you some water first, then I'll get you something to eat once I'm done showering."

I filled up his bowl with water from the sink and set it aside for him to drink while I prepped up a warm bath for myself. Once the tub was full of warm water, I took off my bathrobes and slipped into the warm tub, groaning with relief as the heat of the bath helped soothed my already sore muscles. 

The bath kinda helped me relaxed after yesterday night, but I still couldn't shake my mind off the nightmare I had yesterday. What was that all about? Was that my past I saw? And did I really just see my sister, Emily? No, it couldn't be. 

I had no idea why, but I don't remember much about what happened to my family. Something in my mind convinced me that my parents and Emily were killed by Raiders. At least, that's how I thought they died. I honestly do not remember the slightest of what happened to my entire family. Maybe getting shot in the head two times gave me a bit of amnesia that I can hardly even remember much about them. 

But what the hell did I just see in my dreams last night? Could it be what really happened to Emily? Perhaps my parents?

My thoughts were interrupted when ED-E, the eyebot, flew into the bathroom and urgently beeped at me. I nearly jumped out of the bath as he had just all of a sudden flew right in and startled me out of my thoughts. ED-E hovered just above me, while my entire face was covered with soap bubbles after thrashing around.

"Ever heard about knocking, ED-E?" I asked, annoyed, wiping the bubbles off my face. ED-E gave a beep that sounded he was apologizing. I gave a sigh as I got out of the tub and put back on my bathrobes.

"It's alright ED-E, I ain't mad at you buddy." I smiled and gave a light pat at his side. "Now what seems to be the problem?"

<Urgent Beep>

"You've received a message from someone?" 

<Affirmative Beep>

Strange. ED-E never got any messages from anyone before. Only times I considered he got a message from someone or something was when someone or something reminded of his past with the Enclave. But those were just old recordings of his creator, some guy named Whitley. The recordings might have been pre-recorded and triggered to play if something was able to remind ED-E about his past. But to receive a message from someone without any form of trigger from his past, this was quite unusual for ED-E.

"...Do you know who it was from?" I asked.

<Negative Beep> 	

"I see." I grabbed my Pip-Boy off the small coffee table beside the tub and connected a few wires from it to ED-E's hard drive. "Here, I'll download it on my Pip-Boy and give it a listen later. Meanwhile, you want to help me cook up some omelets for everyone?"	

<Affirmative Beep>

"Alright then." I slipped my Pip-Boy back onto my wrist and walked back to my bedroom. "Let me get dressed first while you go on and wait in the kitchen." 




It was another bright day in the Mojave Wasteland. The geckos were out hunting and radscorpions scuttling about. Often times, many would see the usual caravan group heading to different communities or running into a random stranger for some trading. It seemed that for the first time, ever since the death of Caesar, the Mojave was slightly at peace. Or so did many thought.

Further south from the Nipton Road Pit Stop, just southwest of the Mojave Drive-In, a small Legion slave camp was built near Crescent Canyon. The camp's walls were made of wood and salvaged pieces of a trashed pre-war airplane with some heavy-duty barbed wire at the top. A makeshift guard tower was established in the middle of a camp with a sniper on overwatch duty. Despite being close to the NCR's Mojave Outpost, the camp was well hidden due to the high amount of geckos and radscorpions and dust storms in the area. Inside the camp were a couple of tents, a single campfire, and a few cages to hold captured slaves until the proper men were able to transport them back across the Colorado River. A family of four – a mother, father, brother, and sister – captured just a few days ago, were locked in the cages. The women would most likely become slaves while the males would be forced to be part of Caesar's army or face death by crucifixion. This small camp consisted of at least 60 legionaries, mainly prime legionnaires led by a few veterans and decanus'. All of them were heavily armed with machetes and some of the strongest guns that the Mojave had to offer.

Two legionnaires stood guard at the gate, armed with marksman carbines. Far away with them, a scouting party of legionnaires were returning back to base with more supplies and perhaps another slave.

The scouting party was lead by one decanus and following were five prime legionaries. One of the prime legionaries was carrying a large burlap sack behind him. It would have seemed that they had captured another slave.

"Ave, amicus," the guard saluted. "What news do you bring from last night?"

"The NCR is beginning to set up more checkpoints and patrols north of Nipton." The decanus explained. "It would seem that invading the town of Novac will not be easy. If the NCR patrols and checkpoints don't stop us, then one of the former 1st Reconnaissance snipers will.

"Still, Gaius Magnus ordered us to wait until more men arrive to help stage the attack on the Mojave Outpost, the towns of Primm, Novac, and Goodsprings before sending the slaves across the Colorado after that."

Looking over the decanus' shoulders, one of the guards asked, "And what might be in that sack?"

The prime legionary holding the sack opened it up and dropped whatever he carried onto the ground. The guards were speechless as they saw that it was a living creature. It was...something they had never seen before. Even some of the soldiers in the camp had to stopped doing whatever it was they were doing to take a look at what was brought to their camp.

It was a sort of four-legged animal with a coat of purple. It was almost like a large dog, except that its muzzle was a bit strange and it had hooves. It also had long stripped violet hair with a pointed horn on its forehead. From the appearance of it, the creature was definitely a female. It was currently unconscious and all four of its hooves were bound tightly with rope.

"Is that what I think it is?" The guard asked, bewildered by the appearance of the captive.

"Indeed," the decanus nodded. "It appears to be a horse, an animal that has been extinct for 200 years."

The guard bent down and got a closer look at it. "It looks like something out of a child's storybook. Where did you find it?"
"Last night when we were returning to the camp from Nipton, we saw a strange light flashing at the old drive-in. We headed over to see what it was and by the time got there, we found this...thing."

"Anything else you can tell us?" The guard asked.

"Yes. Apparently, this horse...or whatever it is, can talk. Very intelligent it seems. When we found it, it awoken with fear and was screaming and calling for help. We had no choice but to subdue it." The decanus explained.  "It is something we have never seen before or why it can be that intelligent."

"It also carried this bag with it." One of the legionnaires tossed a saddle bag to the guard's feet. The guard picked it up and looked inside to find some books, a map of some sort, an emergency kit and blanket. There was some apples and a paper bag full of something.

"What is this?" The guard asked, holding up the paper bag full of strange food. 

"I do not know," the decanus shrugged. "Perhaps this is what it eats. You better not touch them. They could be poisonous."

The guard tossed the bag back at the legionnaire after looking through it. Taking another look at the unconscious creature, the guard asked, "So what should we do with it?"

"Put it in one of the cages." The decanus ordered. "When it awakens, we'll question it and see what we can learn about it."
"Then what happens after that?" The guard asked again.

The decanus thought for a moment before giving his conclusion. "Once we're done questioning, we'll send it across the Colorado to join up with the other slaves in Dry Wells. I believe Gaius Magnus might have some use for it. Otherwise, we may just have to kill it."

Nodding, the guards picked up the unconscious creature and dragged it towards one of the cages. 




"...This is your road. When you come, you'll walk it alone."

A set of coordinates followed, and I frowned as it finished. I had just finished breakfast with my friends a while ago and was now back in my room, listening to the message I downloaded off of ED-E. 

The message I received was signed off by someone named Ulysses. I don't know who this Ulysses was, but whoever he is, he was calling me to some place called the Divide so that we can have an end to something.

"The Divide?" I muttered to myself. "Well, shit."

The Divide was another deathtrap like the Sierra Madre, but much worse. When I was in Zion Valley, Joshua Graham told me that the Divide was "a gaping wound cut into the Earth, cursed and damned. No place for God-fearing folk". Graham also mentioned that only fools and madmen would dare venture into that land, because all the roads that lead into the same grave. In other words, anyone that marched into that cursed place ended up dead. 

The coordinates included in the message lead directly towards an area called Canyon Wreckage. It was just northwest of Primm. I wasn't sure about going, but this sounded like pretty serious business for me. I could also bring my friends along, but the message specifically told me that I must go alone. I suppose it was for the best. I didn't want anything to happen to my friends. 

Well, if I'm about to trek across that hellhole of the Divide, this would be the best time to take inventory. A set of pre-war SWAT armor, a scoped hunting rifle, a .45 submachine gun, a scoped .44 magnum revolver, a silenced 10mm pistol for covert uses, and a pulse gun for disabling any hostile robots or automated security that would pose a threat in some areas. Other gadgets I carried were a combat knife, 12 frag grenades, a Stealth Boy, a Codac 9000 camera with plenty of film, a pair of binoculars, and the Big MT Transportalponder for emergency uses. Lastly, I had enough food, water, ammo, medical supplies, and a few books stashed away in my survival pack. I was now ready for another adventure.

Slipping my “lucky shades” over my eyes, I slipped quietly out of my room and into the elevator. I could still hear my friends in the kitchen. Cass was joking around at the table, probably still drunk from last night. Raul and Lily were sharing tales about the old days while Arcade and Veronica were talking about science, medicine, and history alike. Boone didn't really talk a lot at the table.

As the elevator went up to the penthouse floor, I went over the letter I had written in my mind one last time. I can only hope it was enough to let them know that I was going to be gone for a few days, perhaps a week.

Guys,

I've got some important errands to run with the NCR. Might take a few days or a week for me to get back. Until then, our assignment to Hoover Dam will have to wait. If you need anything, you're free to go up to the penthouse and ask the securitrons for whatever services you need. Don't worry about them, they've been reprogrammed to allow anyone to go up the penthouse. Take care of yourselves, and I'll see you all soon.

~ Bill

The elevator doors opened and I was greeted by the face of a securitron patrolling the floor. It let me through and continued on with its patrol. I walked down the steps to a massive terminal – the terminal that once showed the face of Mr. Robert Eden House. It was now a blank, empty screen, a grim reminder of House's demise by my hands.

I'm not proud of what I did, but Mr. House was just another tyrant that had to go. I've worked with him for quite some time, thinking that what he was doing was for the good of the Mojave. Then he gave me another job, one that would ultimately hurt one of my closest friends if I did it, even if it was for the benefit of mankind. That was where I drew the line, and decided to go my separate ways from him.

I really did feel bad for killing Mr. House. I normally would have settled things with words, but there was no reasoning with him, no matter how hard I tried. In the end, he needed to be stopped. To this day, I wondered if I made the right choice to end him, only to tell myself that, yes, it was the right thing.

But there was no time to mope about the past. What's done is done. The reason I came up to the penthouse was not to feel bad about killing House, but to use his large terminal to access more “luxurious parts” of the Lucky 38. More specifically, the penthouse's balcony of the Lucky 38. If I needed to get to Primm in half a day without tiring myself, I'd need to use the Big Mountain Transportalponder. To use that, I'd need to be outside, though I'd prefer not to use it in the middle of the Strip, unless I want everyone freaking out as I disapperg right before their eyes. Hence, the need to access the Lucky 38's balcony, to have some peace and quiet and use the Transportalponder some place where no one could see me.

I accessed the balcony access on House's terminal and was surprised to see that it gave me permission to give access to the balcony. I thought that killing House would disable executive access to the Lucky 38, but I guess with him out off the picture, anything was free to access. I heard the glass windows on the right side of the terminal opening up, letting in the warm breeze of the Mojave Wasteland inside the penthouse. Before I stepped outside, I turned to one of the securitrons standing guard at the terminal.

“Securitron!”

The securitron focused on me before I heard an affirmative beep from it. It gave me confirmation that despite House being out of the picture, these robots were now loyal to me. I guess it was because that House considered me an ally beforehand, which made the securitrons see me as a friend. Even with House dead, I guess that command still works since he wasn't able to order the securitrons to kill me.

“If it isn't our favourite VIP!” Greeted the securitron. “What can I do for you?”

“Go and fetch me an ice cold Nuka Cola, if you'd be so kind.” I responded politely.

Another affirmative beep came from the robot and it sped off to bar nearby. It returned in a short time with a bottle of chilled Nuka Cola in its hands.

“Here you are, a bottle of Nuka Cola, cold as ice.”

“Thank you, securitron.” I nodded. “Resume your regular patrol pattern.”

I took the Nuka Cola, feeling the icy coolness of the bottle gripped in my hand. I pulled off the bottle cap and put it away in my wallet before taking a good sip of the beverage. I stepped outside on the balcony and felt a fresh breeze blowing against me. The sun was shining brightly up in the sky, announcing a start of another new day here in the Mojave Wasteland.

I leaned against the railing and finished off the last of my Nuka Cola while looking at the scenery. I had never been on the outdoor balcony at the Lucky 38, so I didn't expect to find the view more beautiful from up here. You could see the entire Mojave Wasteland from here and man, is it a beauty. It was almost like overlooking Zion Valley from a high spot while having a mug of coffee in your hands, except here I was on the balcony of the tallest casino in the world, sipping on a bottle of ice cold Nuka Cola.

Well, as much as I wanted to enjoy the view, it was about time I get a move on. I needed to get to Primm before nightfall, otherwise it would be more dangerous for me to travel at night. The Transportalponder would teleport me to Big MT, where I can quickly check on some things before having to teleport back to the Mojave Drive-in, the place that's closest enough for me to walk to Primm.

Pulling out my Transportalponder, I raised it up in the air, and like some silly action hero from the back-when times, I yelled “SUNLIGHT!” before disappearing in a bright blue light.




Twilight felt her head throbbing with pain as her eyes slowly began to open. She blinked a few times before she found herself lying on a bed of hay. Checking her surroundings, it appears that she was locked up in a cage. Her hooves felt heavy and as she looked down, all four of them were tied together with rope. She began to panic as she realized the situation she was in. She struggled to free herself, but her hooves were tied up very tightly. 

A voice spoke from behind her. “Well, well, look whose waking up?” 

She turned to the source of the voice and saw that it was an ape like creature that was talking to her. His entire body was clothed with crimson armor while its facial features were hidden behind a mask. Twilight shrank back in fear by his menacing appearance. She back down further as two more of the creatures, dressed in the same clothes approached him from behind. Suddenly, it was all coming back to her now.







	Twilight had stirred awake after what had just happened and found herself lying in the middle of a desert at nighttime. A desert? Since when was the last time was she in a desert? She was supposed to be in the Everfree Forest, not in some sandy desert. Just where in Equestria was she?

	"Hey! It's waking up!" A voice whispered loudly.

	She looked up and found herself staring at six bipedal creatures that had her surrounded. They wore thick crimson armor and masks over their faces, but whoever they were, they definitely resemble as primates. In their hands, they held strange weapons that seemed to be a hybrid of a crossbow and cannon. Seeing the creatures, made Twilight frozen with fear. She became even more frightened when she saw that they were aiming their weapons at her.

	Twilight was instantly on her hooves and she made an attempt to push through these bipeds with her magic and just run for it, but they were already onto her, pinning her down on the ground as she struggled to break free. She screamed at the top of her lungs for help, but the reality was that there was nopony going to rescue her now.

	Eventually, one of the biped creatures clamped her mouth shut and as she looked up, she found herself staring at one of them. Its face was masked with a different type of mask, like it was made of crimson bird feathers. In its hands, she was able to see something as the size of a syringe as it bent down in front of her and gently pricked the side of her neck. She struggled even more as something was being injected into her bloodstream, but she couldn't escape from the grip of the bipeds.

	In a few seconds, Twilight had ceased her struggling to escape when she all of a sudden felt very woozy, and before she knew it, her whole world went dark.







That was all Twilight could remember, waking up in this desert to being captured by these bipedal creatures.  Twilight knew she was no longer in her world, but in another world of different environments and different species. Normally, her usual nerdiness would get her all hyped up with excitement for seeing such a whole new world and perhaps an entirely new species, but given the situation she was in right now, that was a different story.

One of the creatures got near to her cage and bent down for a closer look. "Why do we have this thing captured? Look at it, it's a stupid, defected mongrel. You expect me to believe that it's some extinct animal that talks?"

The bipedal reached behind and pulled out a shorter weapon it carried and aimed it right at Twilight.  "Are you understanding what I am saying?" His voice was a slight growl "Unless you want me to believe that you can talk, then you better start talking or I will decorate this entire cage with your brains."

Twilight shook with fear at the threat the biped made. She decided to do what he ordered her to do before she wounded up dead. "M-m-my name is...Twilight Sparkle...I am a pony...or a unicorn, if you want to put it that way..." She then shied herself away from him and softly began to cry. "Please...don't hurt me..."

The bipeds began whispering to each other while Twilight continued crying. She clenched her eyes shut and prepared herself for the inevitable. The one at the front spoke to her, this time, he seemed to be a bit more docile than the one that threatened her.

"Don't worry." He assured. "I won't have you killed right on the spot. I mean, what good of a slave will you be if you wounded up dead." 

	Slave? Twilight shuddered in terror.

He stuck his hand in the cage and slowly reached it towards Twilight. She tried to back herself up against the cage, but in the end, the creature was able to get his grasp on her. He inflicted no physical harm on her, but he was gently petting her like a dog. She grimaced slightly, feeling as she was being violated by him. In the end, he pulled his hand away from the cage and dropped something at the front. It was a bright, orange carrot.

"Eat up," the biped said. "Gaius Magnus would not want to have a weak slave like you around if you don't eat anything."

Twilight just shook her head. "Please, you're making a mistake. I'm not supposed to be here. Just please, let me go. I won't tell anypony where you are, I promise."

"Oh, but why should I let you go?" Asked the biped. "You're now a property of Caesar's Legion, and there is no way I can let you go. Anyone that is of property of Caesar may never leave. So you might as well enjoy the time you have here before we'll have to ship you across the Colorado later on."

With that, the biped got back up on his feet and departed away from the cage. When Twilight believed that no one was looking, she struggled to free her hooves from the tight rope bound around them, but no there was no avail on freeing herself. It looked like there was no way on freeing herself, until she nearly slapped herself for being so stupid. 

	Of course! I'm a unicorn, duh! I can just use my magic to get out of this. She thought to herself. 

Twilight had learned many magical spells over the years and even the simplest of spells could help get her out of this. She could even teleport herself away from this place as far as she can. Though the problem was that because she did not know where she was or the area around her, she won't be able to teleport to safety. Even if she did try, she might end up in a more dangerous location or worse, in front of one of those bipeds. So there was a bit of a downside for her.

Looking outside her cage, she saw at least sixties of these bipeds dressed in crimson armor and wearing strange masks. There were tents, a few campfires, crates of supplies, and a large wall of junk surrounded the area. Twilight took the guess that she was in some sort of prison camp. In the center of the camp was a makeshift watch tower where one of the bipeds were providing overwatch. Maybe it was best for her to slip out of this place quietly.

Spying a crooked nail sticking at the side of the cage, Twilight used her magic to gently levitate the nail over and slowly began to use it to cut the ropes. After a minute of sawing through the thick rope, the rope snapped, freeing herself at last. Making sure that no one was looking, she teleported herself out of the cage and right in front of it now.

Twilight quickly dived behind cover as the guard in the watch tower nearly spotted her. With the relief knowing that she hadn't been spotted, Twilight was about to sneak her way out of the camp when she was halted by someone whispering behind her. The tone of voice sounded male.

"Pssst, you there. Please, come over here."

Twilight froze, worried that she had been spotted by a guard, but she wasn't. Turning around, she saw that it was more of these bipeds locked in cages. They were much different however. They wore rag like clothing over their bodies and had some cuts and bruises on their arms and legs. There was four of them: two of them looked much older while two more were quite young. Convinced that they were no harm to her, she quietly approached them and made sure she wasn't being watched.

"Please, you've got to let us out!" The older looking biped whispered. "My wife and I, along with our two children were taken by these bastard and been holed up in these cages since then. Get us out of here, please!"

Twilight looked at the biped family locked behind the cages. The male and his wife were locked in one cage, and the children, one boy and girl were locked in another. She instantly felt sympathy for the family, but what can she do to help them? There were more of these hostile bipeds and just her and these other four harmless bipeds that may not be able to do well in a fight.

"I'm really sorry," Twilight replied apologetically. "But I don't think I will be able to help you. I really do not know where I am and I'm not even supposed to be here. I'm sorry. I'd like to help, but I do not what to do."

"Please, you have to help us!" The older female begged. "We don't want to become slaves to these savages." Before Twilight could respond, the female biped reached her arms out of the cage and took Twilight's hooves into her hands. "If you can't save us, then at least help free our children. It's better for them to live freely than die as slaves. Please!"

She looked to the other cage, at the younger bipedal creatures. They looked at her with sadness and fear in their eyes, begging for her to free them. Twilight's heart ached with sympathy. She didn't know who these people were, but she couldn't shake the thought of what the labor these children would be put up with if she didn't free them. Twilight knew she had to help set this family free, but how?

Twilight heaved a deep sigh. "If I am going to help you all, at least let me go and find some help."

The female nodded. "Then Look for the NCR and tell them we're being held captive here."

"NCR?" Twilight asked.

"The New California Republic." The male explained. "They've got soldiers all around the wasteland. Look for people that have a symbol of a two-headed bear on their clothes. They'll know what to do."

Twilight gave it a thought before nodding. "I'll see what I can do. Just stay put and I'll get this so called NCR to come and help."

The female once again took her hooves and shook them. "Thank you, thank you so much! We are forever in your debt."

Twilight gave a small smile of assurance at the family, then prepared to sneak out of the camp. She kept low behind the crates and tents, anywhere away from the opening and the view of the guard tower. Eventually, she made it to what appeared to be the entrance of the camp. Two guards were stationed near the entrance, and as luck would have had it, the two guards moved away from the entrance and went off for a break. This was her chance to escape. She was about to make a run for it when one of the bipeds emerged from one of the tents in front of her, and faced her!

The biped halted as he spotted Twilight while she rooted to the spot in horror. Twilight felt her breath caught in her throat as the two of them continued staring down at each other. 

"What the fu-"

The biped never got to finish his words as Twilight used her magic to lift him up in the air and tossed him into the middle of the camp. Without a second thought, Twilight made a run for it as the entire camp scrambled in chaos.

"Damn!"

"What the...?!"

"Rouse yourselves! Wake up! We've got an escaped slave!"

"After her! Don't let her escape!"

Twilight kept running as fast as she could to escape the bipeds. She gave a quick look behind her to see four of them pursuing her. The sand near her legs exploded as the bipeds opened fire onto her. She ran faster and dodged left to right to avoid being hit. 

She spotted an area with a bunch of rocky hills where she might be able to lose them from there. Just as she was about to reach the hills, something had struck her in the leg. She cried out in pain as she fell to the ground. She looked at her leg to see a large bleeding hole in her leg. Using her two front hooves, she attempted to crawl towards the hill of rocks when she felt something grab her injured leg. She yelled out in pain as she was being dragged back. She turned to face one of the bipeds raising his weapon and bringing the bottom of it down on her face.




Another blinding flash and there I was, back at the Mojave Drive-In. I had just finished a few things errands at the Big MT and now I was back in the Mojave Wasteland. Looking at my Pip-Boy, it was now 6:35 p.m. and the sun was beginning to set, meaning I needed to get to Primm before it got dark. Shrugging my knapsack back onto my shoulders, I continued down the road towards the town of Primm, while keeping an eye out for Raiders or any Legion hit squad that would be stupid enough to come after me.

As I continued walking down the road, I all of a sudden heard gunshots coming from the west. Normally, I would have just ignored it as it was probably raiders, and I would rather much avoid a fight with them unless they picked a fight with me, but the gunshots sounded like marksman and assault carbines. A bit too odd for raiders to get their hands on such weapons, seeing how they almost never have such good weaponry. Whatever was going on in the west, it might be worth checking out. Besides, you'll never know if it is some damsel in distress or whatever.

Pulling out my rifle, I jogged west towards a hill of rocks to see if I can get a good glimpse of what was going on in the west side. Glancing up ahead, I could see something running towards me. I threw my pack on the ground, yanked out my binoculars and looked through to see what it was. I got a good view of it, and whatever it is, it wasn't human.

It was a four-legged creature with coat of purple. It looked almost like a brahmin, except that its muzzle was in a much strange position and it only had one head. It also had long stripped violet hair and a pointed horn on its forehead. From the looks of the creature, it was definitely female. There was also some sort of star tattooed on both the side of her flanks.

	A horse? I thought those things were extinct for two hundred years.

The creature did look like a horse, an animal that had gone extinct for two hundred years after the Great War. I learned about them from pre-war books and I knew what they exactly looked like, but this one was much different than the ones I saw in the books. Asided from that pointed horn on her head, she looked much like a cartoon character from one of those old pre-war kiddie cartoons.

All of a sudden, a shot barked off in the distance and a bullet struck through one of the horse's legs. She cried out in pain, and it did not sounded like an animal in pain. She sounded more like a young women crying out in pain, like she was a human on the inside. I thought horses were supposed make this neighing sound. That's when I realized, what if she wasn't a horse? What if she was actually some alien in disguise?
Well, never mind that, someone had just shot it and I think it would be best that I'd stay down. I looked ahead with my binoculars and saw four men dressed in crimson armor rushing towards her. Legionaries, I should have known.

Four of them – three primes and one decanus, all armed to the teeth with some of the strongest weapons that the Mojave had to offer. I zoomed back in onto the horse who was trying to crawl towards the rocky hills I was hiding at, a small trail of blood was being left behind as it was trying to escape. Eventually, the decanus got close to her and grabbed her wounded leg and dragged her back. She yelled out in pain as she was pulled away from the hill of rocks. The decanus then raised his weapon and brought the butt of it down on to the horse. It was enough to stun the horse for a bit and give the decanus time to tie her up. He must have tied at least twenty-one knots to fully secure her because she wasn't going anywhere.

The horse finally regained her consciousness after a short moment of being stunned and found herself tied up and surrounded by the legionnaires. Through my binoculars, I could see the look of pure terror on her face as she began thrashing around, trying to free herself. What happened next was about to blow me away. Now, I lived long enough in this hostile world to see some crazy shit, but nothing as crazy as this. The horse actually talked, and she spoke very fluent English. Something tells me that she was not from this world and this was enough to prove my point.

"Help!" She cried out. "Somepony, anypony, help me!"

I watched and listened as the legionnaire laughed and landed a hard kick on her head, silencing her. "No one is going to save you now. We're in the middle of nowhere, so don't bother crying out for anyone to save you."

The decanus then grabbed a roll of duct tape from his inventory and grabbing her muzzle, he taped her mouth shut. Her cries of help were now silenced and replaced with her muffled screams. One of the legionnaires grabbed her hair and began dragging her away from the area, probably back to some slave camp they established. Without a second thought, I went prone and pulled my rifle to my shoulder. I used my pack to balance the rifle so I could go for a clean shot.

The legionnaires and the horse (alien?) were getting farther and farther away, but I could still take them out at this range. I had my scope zeroed in on one of them and my finger was ready to sent the .308 round through him. After he's down, I'll take out the rest of them out. 

	Wait? Why am I even saving her? I thought to myself. She's just a talking animal. Or perhaps an alien. Why should I say something that's not from this world and could be potentially dangerous?

Horse, alien, whatever it was, she was still a sentient being and she was in danger. I couldn't just allow her to be taken away to become a slave to the Legion. No one deserved such fate. I aimed down the scope of the rifle directly at the legionnaire's back and I was this close to send the bullet down the range when all of a sudden, I heard him.

"Stop! Don't shoot yet!" The voice said.

I froze on the spot. The voice was a hushed whisper of an adult male in his forties or so, yet I recognized that voice. That voice, oh, that voice. It had authority and gentleness only I can recognize on my own. This man was the one who taught me how to shoot a gun, hunt and survive, and all the while, love and care for me the same time. He was also the one who gave me the scoped .44 on my 9th birthday.

I turned around and there he was, right in front of my very own eyes. He was the splitting image of myself, but much older. He had dark brown hair like mine's, though it was slightly fading away due to age. This man was none other than Edward Davis, my father.

"D-Dad?" I spoke in a nearly hushed whisper.

I just couldn't believe it with my own eyes. My own father was lying right next to me and he was alive! But it can't be...he died six years ago with my mother and Emily, there was no way he was alive. I wanted to believe that it was just some NCR Ranger who had just found me and was helping me out, but it wasn't. That old duster he wore, the .44 magnum that sat in his holster, it really was my father. He was right there, moving, breathing, alive.

He gave me a gentle smile. "How have you been doing son? It's been a long time since we last saw each other."

"But...you were...you were..."

"I can assure you that I'm alright," my father said. "But let's focus on what's going on right now. It seems you have a little hostage situation going on right now."

"Oh, right!" I took aim and was ready to shoot the legionnaire when Dad clamped his hand on mine. I felt goose bumps all over myself. His hand was touching mine, and it felt so real. I would have thought that he was just a ghost talking to me, but he wasn't. He really was alive.

"No, not yet," he urged. "You'll never get them from this range."

"But Dad, I've got him in my sights! I can take the shot and end this! If you could just let-"

"No!" He said forcefully, but calm at the same time. He then gently released my hand and handed me back my binoculars while also taking out his own. "Look back at the legionnaires and that pony. Tell me how far they are."

I obeyed and looked through my binoculars again. They were a bit far away this time, but the four legionnaires all of a sudden came to a halt when the horse's horn glowed violet and it levitated up a rock. My eyes went wide with surprised as I watched her somehow force the stone against the legionnaire's face. The legionnaire grunted in pain and dropped her back onto the ground. This gave me time to at least calculate how far ahead each of them were. After some calculating, I determined that my targets were at least 150m away from us, including that horse, who was now getting pummeled by the legionnaire for what she did to him. Though the punches he inflicted on her were not serious, I think it was best to deal with him and the rest of the legionnaires as fast as possible before things get worse.  

"Targets are at least 150m." I told my father. "No problem Dad, I can just take account of gravity by aiming slightly upwards and take them out from this distance."

Dad shook his head. "It won't work. It might, but did you notice the wind? Tell me, how strong is the wind and what direction is it blowing in? Hold up something like a handkerchief and see for yourself."

I dug into my pockets and found myself holding my sister's bright pink handkerchief, the one thing that I would only remember my sister by, besides a family photo I carried. I held the tip of it and raised it in the air and watched as the wind blew the hankie to the left. The wind was pretty strong, so I knew that what Dad said was true. My bullet wasn't going to hit the legionnaire at this range when the wind is that strong. Most likely that bullet was going to miss him, or worse, hit the horse by mistake.

When I was a young lad, I sometimes went hunting with Dad. We would mainly hunt for geckos or bighorners for meat and hide. This one time, one hunting trip nearly became the death of us. We were trying to reach a nest of deathclaw eggs being guarded by at least two fully grown mother deathclaws. We were joined together with some of my dad's friends, all who were highly skilled hunters. All of us were armed with .308 hunting rifles and our goal was to take out the two of them by shooting them as much as we can until they died, then go grab the eggs before anymore deathclaws showed up. We were well hidden in this abandoned outpost near the nest, so we would be safe from here. 

The first mother deathclaw went down without any problem, but the other one was on high alert now, hearing the shots and seeing that one of her own had fallen. She seemed to be walking towards our direction as that where the shots came from. We remained silent, hoping that she would ignore us and go back to guarding her eggs, but she didn't. As she was getting closer to where we were hiding in, I nearly panicked and I just couldn't take it anymore. I took aim and prepared to send a bullet right in between her eyes. Today was a pretty windy day and I didn't bother to think about compensating for wind and gravity. That was where I made my biggest mistake. I fired and the wind sent the bullet off into another direction. And because the mama deathclaw was that close to where we were, she heard my shot and knew exactly where we were.

For a minute there, my whole life flashed entirely through my eyes as it charged towards us, its sharp claws raised at us. Dad and his friends were already firing their rounds on it with their rifles and just as it was about strike our hideout, Dad delivered the coupe de grâce to the big mama and it was all over. For the rest of the day, I didn't bother speaking to either of them. I was just too ashamed of what I just did. I mean, I nearly got us all killed back there. Dad and his friends kept telling me I was not to blame for and that it was just a simple accident that I needed to be aware of next time, so I guess everything was alright in the end. From then on, I mainly hunted when the wind wasn't too rough, but Dad still trained me on sniping techniques such as this so that I wouldn't make the same mistake I made that very day.

Now, here we were again today, reunited and hunting again. It was just like old times, except now we were hunting four slavers while rescuing one unusual hostage. There was also some pretty strong winds which was going to make this very difficult for me. 

"The wind's a bit rough, so you can compensate it, or wait it out, but by then, she'll be long gone. It's up to you."

I took aim at the legionnaire, this time, my rifle aimed a bit off to the right due to the wind blowing strongly to my left. I knew for sure that if I fired straight, the bullet will fly right off course, away from my target. If I aim it too far to the right, I may accidentally hit that horse instead. I was adjusting my scope while my dad continued talking with me.

"Remember what I taught you all these years. Bear in mind variable humidity and wind speed along the bullet's flight path. At this range, you might have to take the Coriolis Effect in account."

As I was taking careful calculations of the wind speed and the distance of my target, I was noticing that the legionnaire was getting more violent as he continued his lashes against the horse. I was afraid that any minute now, this could all escalate to the worse, where he might decide it was best to kill her than take her back alive. 

	A little bit more to the right...no too far.

I moved the rifle a bit to the left.

	Maybe a  bit to the left?...No, it's going to fly off course.

As I aimed the rifle back a bit more to the right, I felt the wind was slightly dying down a bit, but then, I also noticed that the legionnaire was no longer interested in beating her up. I watched as he pulled out a .45 pistol and aimed it at the horse. 

"Crap, he's going to shoot her!" Dad pointed out.

I finally made my decision and aimed the sniper rifle slightly near him, his right arm to be exact. I should be able to hit him at center mass from this range. If I managed to hit him, he'll drop dead and that horse will be saved. If I miss, he'll execute her and that's one more innocent life lost to the Mojave. I still don't get what was the reason that I should save her, but then again, she was just someone that needed saving. 

"It's now or never, take the shot William!" My father ordered.

I held my breath to steady my aim, my finger curled around the trigger, and without thinking about it any further, I took the shot. 




"That will teach you to mess with me." The biped growled as he landed one more punch against Twilight.

Twilight moaned and whimpered as she once more braced for another punch which was delivered much harder than the last one. Though the injuries weren't severe, the punches he delivered were very hard and there were obvious signs of bruising on her face.

After beating her over and over again, the biped had finally stopped and gave a long stare at Twilight before making his next move. Twilight began to panic. What was he going to do? Beat her more? Torture her? Or worse, kill her?

He made his decision. "This is a waste." He simply said. "The way I see it, you're just a talking defect mutt who is of no use to Caesar's Legion. You have no purpose and no honor to show. You're dissolute. You don't deserve to be a slave, so you might as well just die."

Twilight watched as he reached into one of his pockets and pulled out a shorter weapon and pointed it right at her head. Instantly, Twilight was filled with fear and grief. This was it. Nopony was going to save her and she was going to die right on the spot in this strange world she had just arrived in, never to see her friends or family again. She clenched her eyes shut and whimpered, tears streamed down her cheeks and prepared herself for the inevitable. Just as she thought she was done for, she heard another loud bang from far away, and then felt something warm and sticky splatter all over her. There was a loud shriek of agony as she opened her eyes and to her surprise, saw that the biped had his arm completely torn off. Looking down on herself, she nearly fainted when she saw herself soaked with some of his blood.

The rest of the group was sent into a panic spree. They pulled out their weapons and began firing at whatever had shot their friend. Twilight had her ears pressed flat against her head as the fighting kept going. She watched frightfully as one by one, the bipeds were being killed by some unforeseen forces. The last of the bipeds, frightened of what had just happened made a run for it, but not before getting hit in the back and falling to the ground, dead.




The hunting rifle kicked back against my shoulder like a mule, and I watched as the .308 round flew a bit far off from his heart and instead, tore off his left arm. I watched as he screamed in agony and fell to the ground, clutching the bleeding stump that once held his arm.

"Good shot," I felt Dad pat me on the shoulder. "You took off his arm. Though, shock and blood loss is going to be a slow death for him. My advice is that you get down there as fast you can and just put him out of his misery."

All of a sudden the both of us ducked down behind my survival pack as the three remaining legionnaires opened fire towards us. They knew where we were now. At an instant, I grabbed my rifle and got back into fight.

"Shit, they're onto us! Take out the rest of them before we're dead!" 

The strong wind had finally died down and this was now my chance to use V.A.T.S., the Vault-Tec Assisted Targeting System. I didn't know much about Vault-Tec technology, but from what Doc Mitchell told me, it was a type of computer targeting system that sends a special type of information from my Pip-Boy to my brain. This type of information allows me to slow down time for a short moment and it allows me to target any part of my enemy. It does hurt my eyes afterwards, but it sure helped save my butt a few times.

V.A.T.S. slipped in, and time seemed to slow down. I targeted all three legionnaires in the head and the information provided by V.A.T.S. Informed me that I had an 87% chance of hitting them there. Good enough. Three shots barked and only two rounds met their targets. The last one missed the leader of the group, the decanus. He dropped his weapon and made a run for his life. Reality slipped back in and everything was back at normal speed. With careful aiming, I squeeze the trigger just gently and watched as the .308 round flew downrange and struck the fleeing legionnaire  the back, piercing through the heart, and back out through the chest. He fell to the ground, twitching, before laying dead.

I was still in attack mode, and I was frozen like that until Dad placed a comforting hand on my shoulder to let me know that it was all over and I can calm down now.

"It's alright, William," Dad assured. "It's done. The slavers are dead and you managed to save a hostage. You did well, son."

Sighing, I pulled my rifle back and relaxed. "Thanks to you, Dad."

"Is the pony alright?"

I looked ahead and saw that the horse seemed to be unharmed. Though it was silently crying, the good news was that she was alright. "She's fine." I nodded.

"You'd better go help her out then." My father said, standing up. "Good job William, I'm very proud of you."

I slung on my knapsack over my shoulder and began walking down to help that horse, as well as scavenge for supplies off the dead legionnaires, minus the one that was still alive. As I was heading down, I turned around to thank my dad once more for the help.

"Hey, thanks Da-"

But he was no longer there with me. He had just simply vanished in thin air. I looked around my surroundings to try and see if I can see him running off in the distance or left any footprints, but there was nothing out here.

I heaved a deep sigh. I mean, who was I kidding? Dad died a long time ago, as did Mom and Emily. I learned to accept the fact that a long time ago, my family had died from a raider attack, and that was that. Still, there was so many questions I wanted to ask my father, like what really did happen to him, to my mother, to Emily. I guess I'll never know.

I trudged downward and started off scavenging for supplies off the bodies. I've gotten a few good items: two assault carbines, a marksman carbine, and a 10mm submachine gun that can be sold off to a merchant later on, some miscellaneous ammo, a few food items, and three bottles of purified water. 

That horse was still there, crying her eyes out. I went over to help her when I heard a groan of pain coming from my right. I turned around and saw that the prime legionnaire, the one that got his arm shot off by me, was still alive. Though I couldn't see his face, the skin on his arms and legs were deathly pale and the sand around him was soaked with his blood. I walked over to him and just shook my head at him.

"You should have all left the Mojave alone after Caesar died." I said. “It would have spared you from a fate like this.”

The legionary said nothing. He glared right back at me, his eyes looking right into my soul with fiery rage. Sighing, I pulled out my scoped .44 and decided it was best to end his suffering. I aimed right at his heart, and as I did, I wondered if I should give him a quick death or leave him to bleed to death. After all, he probably deserved to die a slow, painful death, knowing for a fact that he was a murderous slaver, like all of the Legion. Still, father always encouraged me to show mercy to a wounded prey. If I decided to leave him to bleed out, I knew that Dad would have never forgiven me. Mom and Emily as well.

My revolver barked, and the legionary spasmed before laying still. With him finally dead, I reloaded another round into the chamber before holstering the gun away. I then knelt down beside the body and began scavenging whatever supplies he had off of his corpse.

That was when I remember that I had to help that wounded horse. As I walked over, she must have heard me when her ears all of a sudden perked up and she looked directly at me. I froze on the spot. Was she going to attack me? I mean, I had just saw her levitate a single rock and throw it at a Legion soldier with her magical horn. Who knows what else she was capable of.

"It's alright," I raised up my empty hands and approached slowly. "I'm no threat. I'm just someone that wants to help."

She seemed to relax a little bit when I let her know that I was no threat. I knelt down in front of her and began to free her from her bindings. The ropes were a bit too hard for me to untie, so I decided to use my knife and slice the ropes. Seeing me pull out the knife, the horse's eyes went wide with panic. Her horn glowed violet and I began to back away my arms raised in defense.

"Wait! WAIT!" I screamed. "I'm just going to cut your ropes! I'm going to free you!"

The violet glow on her horn died down as she slowly began to calm down once more. Taking a few breaths, I finally risked going into freeing her. I took her tied hooves and began sawing through the ropes until her hooves were finally freed. I carefully removed the duct tape that had clamped her mouth shut without hurting her in the process.

I spent a few seconds looking at her while she as well looked back at me. What the hell was she? Where did she come from? And why is she here? I waited for her to respond to me. When she didn't seem to respond, I took the opportunity to speak to her. 

"I saw you got shot back there, are you alright?" I asked.

She eyed her injured leg and spoke. "M-my right hind leg...it hurts."

I gave it a closer look at it. The wound was just a simple bullet wound. Not too serious, but if left untreated, it could be bad.
"Pfft, that's nothing. I've got the right tools that can easily patch this up in a few seconds."

I reached into my pack and pulled a Doctor's Bag. Inside was filled with all types of medical supplies. I then gathered the necessary tools to perform this simple operation – a shot of Med-X, tweezers, cotton and alcohol, a bandage, and finally, a stimpak. First, I had to dull her pain by giving her a shot of Med-X. Then, I had remove the bullet via tweezers..

"Alright," I held out the syringe of Med-X. "I'm going to give you a shot of Med-X to dull the pain, so that I can take the bullet out of your leg, without having you feel too much of the pain. Then, I'm going to sterilize your wound with some alcohol before wrapping it up in a bandage. Finally, I'll give you a stimpak to make things better. It might sting a little, but are you okay with that?”

She nodded and I took her right hind leg. Gently pricking her leg with the Med-X, I took the tweezers and carefully extracted the bullet out of her wound. Once that was done, I took the cotton and soaked it in alcohol and began cleaning her wound. I watched as she closed her eyes and winced from the pain. With her wound sterilized, I took a roll of bandage and wrapped it around her leg. She was healed, but there was one more thing I needed to do to get her back onto her feet, or hooves in this case.

I took the stimpak and gently poked it into her bandaged leg. She let out a tiny 'ow', but later groaned with relief as the healing effects of the stimpak were taking effect. 

"There we go!” I smiled proudly. I cleaned the tweezers with alcohol before putting everything back into the doctor's bag. “I hope my doctoring skills paid off for the better. How do you feel? Can you walk now?"

She shakily got back on her hooves without any pain. "I think I can now. It doesn't hurt that much anymore.

"I don't who you are or why you did this for me, but thank you for saving me.”

I smiled and gave a small salute. "Just doing my job, ma'am. So, now that you're alright, can you tell me your name and what you are exactly?"

She nodded. "My name is Twilight Sparkle. I'm a unicorn, but in my world, all of us are referred to as ponies. I guess I can be asking the same thing to you."
"Well, Miss Twilight, my name is William B. Davis, but folks just call me Bill or the Courier." I bowed courteously. "I am a human being, meaning I can walk on two legs and have opposable thumbs. We are kinda similar to primates, yes, but at least we're much smarter and we don't swing on vines or eat bananas every time. Anyways, welcome to the Mojave Wasteland – my world, or what's left of it."

Taking another good look at her, I asked, "You're not from here, are you?" 

"No sir," she said. "I'm from Equestria. A land located on planet Earth."

"Earth?" I raised an eyebrow. "You know, this world is also known as Earth, and I have never heard of a place like Equestria until now. I'm guessing your Earth is more different from mine. Tell me, Miss Twilight Sparkle, how did you get here in the first place? More importantly, why did the Legion want to kidnap you?

"Well..." Twilight cleared her throat and began. "My friends and I were investigating a strange disturbance that was going on in the Everfree Forest last night. Something had dropped out of the sky and crashed into the middle of the Everfree and Princess Celestia had assigned my friends and I to investigate what was going on in the forest. We discovered that it was some sort of alien technology because it was unlike something we have seen before. I...well, I might have accidentally messed around with it and I supposed it may have transported me to here, where I was soon captured by these other humans clothed in red." 

"So, you were somehow transported here?" She nodded at my question. "Well, if you don't mind me asking, what did this 'alien object' look like?"

"It was a type of steel, cylindrical shaped meteor with three solar panels sticking to the side of it." Twilight explained. "At the top, it had a theater projector that was projecting an image of a large eye."

The way she described it, she was probably talking about a crashed satellite, the one I found at the Mojave Drive-In. I guess that's where the other crashed satellite might have ended up at. I could finally tell Klein about what happened to his other satellite. Though, he and the rest of the Think Tank are going to have a hard time believing me that their missing satellite crashed on an alien planet.  

"Well, I think I know what you're talking about. That 'alien technology' you saw was something we call a satellite, a pre-war technology that was used to broadcast information electronically across the world. This type of satellite you saw is a type of teleporter made to transport anyone to a pre-war research facility  known as Big Mountain, or because of how some people called it Big MT, you can call it the Big Empty.

"Because there is another one of these satellites here at the Mojave Drive-In, that satellite in your world must have somehow transported you here to the Mojave Wasteland." I gave a light chuckle. "You're lucky you didn't end up at the Big MT because who knows what the Think Tank might have done to you."

"So, is there a way for me to get back home?" She asked.

"To be honest, I'm not even sure." I shrugged. "The Think Tank and I might be able to do something to get you back home using the satellite at the Mojave Drive-In, but because your satellite is in another universe, it may be hard to track it." Twilight's lips formed into a sad frown. "But, don't worry, I'm sure we'll find a way to get you back home."

She lightened up with a smile. "Thanks, I guess."

"I just do what I can to help in a world now run by desperate people." I replied with a smile. "So now that we sorta got to know each other, what's going on between you and the Legion? Why did they want to send you across the Colorado as a slave."

"I...I don't know...They just told me I was going to be a slave and..." Twilight paused and gave a nervous look at me. "...You're not one of them, are you?"
I gave back a disbelieved look at her. "Why the hell would I be part of an empire that murders and enslave innocent lives while at the same time treat women like brahmin? These guys are pigs!" I pointed at the dead legionnaires. "Every single one of them. They don't deserve any forgiveness or mercy for what they've done, and I'm going to make sure of that."

"That's a relief." Twilight breathed. "But anyway, while I was trying to escape, I ran into more humans, a family of four to be exact. They told me to go get the NCR...I think it was the New....New...what was the other word again?"
"You mean the New California Republic?" I helped her answer.

"Yes!" She nodded. "They told me to get the New California Republic, humans with the two-headed bear on their clothes to free them."
"Well say no more," I adjusted my authority sunglasses on my eyes. "I'm a hero in the NCR and I'm sure they would not deny your help, not with me at your side."

"Then we should get going." Twilight said. “That family isn't going to last any longer without help.”

"Damn straight," I turned to the direction of where the Mojave Outpost. "Come along Miss Twilight, I know where we can find the NCR."




So let’s have a little recap, shall we? Here I am, supposing to head off to Primm before nightfall, and now I’m traveling alongside with a pony, a unicorn to be exact. Oh, and apparently, she can talk and her name is Twilight Sparkle.

I ran into Twilight after arriving at the Mojave Drive-In. While walking through the desert, I stumbled to hear her crying for help. Some legionaries were out to capture her and turn her to a slave. I prevented that from happening by taking them out, which was pretty easy. Now, we’re traveling together to go help free a family captured by the Legion, then I go to Primm to get some rest before traversing into some hellhole called the Divide.

But on the bright side, at least I have someone to keep me company, for now.

We continued walking along the dirt roads of the Mojave Wasteland, keeping an eye out for any NCR patrols. I thought about heading towards the Mojave Outpost and getting help, but sure enough, I saw a patrol of at least six NCR troopers heading our way. These guys looked well armed and well trained. They were perfect.

"Patrol up ahead," I pointed put. "Stay behind me, I'll talk to them."

I waved over at the troopers and they approached us. Twilight was hiding behind me as I did the talking.
"You're the Courier that's been doing a lot of good for the NCR." The squad leader greeted, his hand outstretched. "What brings you out here?"

"Nothing much, soldier," I shook his hand. "Just wandering and prospecting, that's all. Say, you boys have some time to spare? I'm going to need your help."

"Are you kidding? We've got a few hours left on our patrol, so yes, we have time. What do you need?”

"Well, I ran into a bit of trouble you see, and I made myself a new friend here that really needs your help." I explained. "She's not from here, but I can assure you, she's harmless."

I stepped aside to revel Twilight to the troopers. She shied herself away from them while the six NCR troopers stared at her in shock and disbelief. Obviously, they had never seen anything like her.

"Twilight, it's alright, they're the good guys." I assured. "Go ahead, talk to them."

She looked up at them and softly said, "Um...hello."

Three of the troopers reeled back in surprise while two of them had their service rifles aimed at her. Twilight flinched away in fear while I leapt in front of her.

"Woah, woah!" I shouted, arms raised in the front of them. "It's alright, she's no harm."

"What the hell is that thing?" The squad leader pointed out.

"That 'thing' is my new friend you're talking to." I said, frowning at the NCR trooper. "But because you asked, she is a horse, a pony to be exact. I know, they've been extinct two hundred years ago, but she's from another world, so technically, she's an alien. Look, the point is, she's harmless and she needs your help. She'll gladly tell you everything if you would just lower your weapons, please.”

The squad leader turned to the two of his men, still pointing their service rifles directly at me. "You heard the man, put down your weapons. Let's hear what this thing has to say." 
The troopers obeyed and lowered their service rifles. I gave a nod of thanks and stepped aside. She was trembling, but I assured her that everything was alright now.

"Hello..." she began nervously. "My name is Twilight Sparkle...I take it that you're with the NCR?"

"Yes ma'am," the squad leader nodded. "I'm Sergeant McGee of the New California Republic Army, 5th Battalion, 1st Company. State your business here."

"I...I need your help." Twilight began, this time, she was more confident than before. "I was captured by the Legion and had barely escaped from that camp with my life.” She pointed a hoof up northeast, indicating that was where the camp was. “While I was held captive, I also met four more humans that were also held captive there and they ask for your help. I know it isn't my place to give orders, but I'm going to need your help to rescue those humans."

"We've heard about that place.” McGee said. “The Rangers have been keeping an eye on that place for a few days now. How they're getting more men there, I do not know. But if they're beginning to capture civilians out here, then that means they're also preparing to raid caravans and the surrounding communities around here. Perhaps even try to stage an attack on the Mojave Outpost. That's something we mustn't allow." McGee simply unloading his magazine to check that all his rounds were in there before slotting it back into his gun. "Say no more, we're in."

"Well, that was easy." Twilight sighed with relief.

"The Legion can think they can set camp in our territory, well they can think again." McGee said. "Squad, follow the Courier and Miss Twilight Sparkle here, we've got a camp of legionaries to burn down."

"Lead the way." I gestured to Twilight. She nodded and lead us to the northeast area of the desert, towards Crescent Canyon.

I was just walking alongside with her when she turned to me and said, "Friend? You say that I'm a friend, but  we just met each other today. Why's that?"

I shrugged with a smile. "The wasteland is terrible place, lonely too. But sometimes, having a friend by your side can make all the difference out here. Given the current situation you're in, I suppose you need a friend by your side so, why not?" 

Twilight gave a small smile. "Thank you, Bill."




[Time: 7:35 p.m.]

"How many are in the camp?" Sergeant McGee asked.

I lowered my binoculars. "I count at least 60 men inside the camp. The captured family is being kept in some cages just center right of the camp. We got a sniper tower in the center with one Legion sniper up there. One thing for sure, I can't be able to identify their leader."

It wasn't that long of a walk, but Twilight and I had finally made it towards the makeshift Legion slave camp near Crescent Canyon. Sergeant McGee and his men were right behind us. We were currently hiding just north from the camp.

"So how do we deal with this camp?" One of the troopers asked. "They've got us all outnumbered." 

"Well it's starting to get dark, so most of these legionnaires are going to sleep in their tents." I pointed out. "I've got a spare Stealth Boy I could use to sneak into their camp and set up a few grenade bouquets just above the tents with the most soldiers inside. Once that's done, I'll sneak back over here where I'll take out the sniper and the two guards at the entrance of the camp. When the legionnaires awake from the gunshots and come out to deal with the attack, they'll knock over the grenade bouquets by accident and...boom. With most of them dead, we'll be able to storm into the camp and pick off the remaining legionnaires while freeing the captives at the same time. Other than that, follow my lead, and I promise you that every one of you will survive this."

"Well, unless someone's got a better plan, say it now. Otherwise, let's do this." Sergeant McGee said. 

With no response from the rest of Sergeant McGee's troopers, I slipped a Stealth Boy over my right arm, punched in a few buttons, and the stealth field projected all around me, rendering me invisible. 

"What the...How did you...?" Twilight stammered.
"I'll explain later," I said. "For now, stay back here with Sergeant McGee and the rest of the NCR troopers."

Knowing where I was, Sergeant McGee placed a hand on my currently invisible shoulder and wished me luck. Though he might not be able to see me, I simply nodded back and made my way towards the Legion slave camp. 




Most of the legionnaires in the camp had gone off to bed while some of them stayed awake to eat and keep a watchful eyes on the captives. A veteran decanus, the leader of the camp paced angrily around the camp. Today, was not a good day for him. A slave had just escaped from this camp and it wasn't even human, but some four-legged creature, almost like a brahmin. His men that were sent out to recapture her did not come back, so he believed that they were still out looking for them, otherwise they had been killed by radscorpions or an NCR patrol.

The decanus climbed up to the sniper tower to check on the sniper who was still remaining vigilant throughout the whole day, making sure nothing gets in or out of the camp. The sniper noticed him climbing up and bowed in front of him.

"Have you had luck spotting our men and the escaped slave?" The decanus asked.

"I'm sorry sir, but I wasn't able to find our men or the escaped slave. Perhaps they might have been-"

Before the sniper could get another word out of his mouth, a loud bang echoed in the darkened skies and his head disintegrated into a shower of gore. The decanus got down on his belly when he heard to more shots being fired. Peeking out slightly, he had saw that two of the guards outside the gate had been killed. 

Pulling out the sniper's binoculars, the decanus took a look to see who was responsible for doing this and after some adjustments, he saw that it was none other than the Courier, the four-legged creature, and a few NCR troopers with them. He instantly took cover again as he saw that the Courier was aiming a hunting rifle towards his direction.

"Wake up, all of you!" The decanus cried out. "It's the Courier and the NCR! Kill them all!"

The Legion troops near the campfires dropper their food and pulled out their weapons. Some of the ones in the tents however, weren't so lucky. As soon as the legionnaires woke up in their tents, there was all of a sudden some horrified screams and sounds of frantic struggling before large explosions engulfed from a few tents, sending down a shower of sand and dust, destroyed tent parts, burnt up pieces of roll-up beds, and severed limbs in the aftermath of the explosion. The decanus gritted his teeth in anger. The Courier and the NCR had outsmarted him and now, he and his men, and this entire camp was going to burn to the ground.

Not if he had anything to do about it.




I had just made it back to our position right before my Stealth Boy had just worn off. Twilight and the rest of the NCR looked like they had an heart attack as I had all of a sudden appeared right in front of them. Couldn't blame them for getting spooked like that. It's not every day you see someone using a Stealth Boy.

"Jesus Christ," McGee gasped. "Next time, just let us know that you're back instead of scaring us like that. You've got all the traps set up?"

"Yup," I took out my rifle and aimed towards the sniper in the makeshift tower. "Now, it's time to wake this camp up."

All of a sudden, another target appeared in the view of my scope. He was a veteran decanus, probably the leader of the camp.

"Look who showed up near the sniper," an NCR trooper pointed out. "He must be the big cheese running this place."

"Can you take him out from here?" McGee asked.

"I could try, but I can't make any promises." I replied. "After all, the plan was to eliminate the sniper and two guards at the gate. The grenade bouquet traps should cripple most of their forces so the fighting would be much easier."

"Still, are you sure this plan is going to work?" Another NCR soldier asked.

"Trust me," I took aim at the Legion sniper's head and sent the .308 round downrange. The bullet successfully met its target as I concluded my statement. "I'm the Courier. Now, watch as the fun starts."

Through my scope, I watched as the camp's leader dove behind cover before turning back to the two guards at the gate. They were now on full alert before I took the two of them out using V.A.T.S. 

The camp leader poked his head out slightly with binoculars in his hand and I guess he must have saw me waving at him. He once more took cover as my other round had barely missed him. And then, it happened.

In about a few seconds after the sniper fire, a few of the tents containing the most legionnaires inside exploded in a wall of a sand. Judging by the large explosion radius, the ones inside the tents were most likely dead. That should pull the plug on the number of Legion troops. 

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" I gave out a hearty laugh. "Oh, looks like they're going to have to glue you back together, IN HELL!" 

Sergeant McGee was taken aback by the scene. "Holy shit..." Meanwhile, the rest of the troopers were cheering.

“Hoorah!”

“Get some!”

"That was fucking awesome!" 

"Hell yeah! You don't fuck with the NCR!" 

The rest of the NCR was cheering and patting me on the back. Twilight however, was completely shocked and disgusted at what I had done. "What in the wide, wide world of Equestria was that supposed to be?!"

"The most amazing thing you have ever seen." I replied, wheezing with laughter.

"You just murdered those humans!" Twilight protested. "How is that even funny to you? It's sick!"

"Excuse me?" I turned to face Twilight with a stern look. The sight of it made Twilight step back a little bit. "Are you telling me you would sympathize with these murdering, raping, psychopaths after what they had tried to do to you?"

Twilight's expression immediately changed. "Well...no...that's not to say I'm supporting them...but still, that's just not right. I never knew that you would kill your own kind like that."

"Well, get used to it." I said. "This is war, and that is how people win wars nowadays."

"But was there any other reason to kill them like that?" Twilight protested. "We could have at least talked them out on releasing the prisoners. Wouldn't it have been better to negotiate with them, rather than killing them like that?"

"Look, Sparkle," I growled impatiently. "I don't have the time to argue philosophy with you now, so I'm going to level with you on this. There is no way to negotiate with these megalomaniacs. Try if you want, but these guys are fanatically, devoted to their leader, and they will do whatever it takes to fight in his name. This means they'll continue to terrorize communities, murder and enslave innocents, and other horrendous things that even I can't bring myself to tell you, all for their 'mighty' leader, whose now beyond the grave. That is why we fight and kill these guys, so that we can stop them from causing more harm to the good and free people in a world run by desperate people.

"This is a war Twilight, and sometimes words will never be able to end wars in times like this. You'd have to keep fighting until the job is done, until this war finally ends. You don't like it, fine, but don't try and argue with me on morality. Understand?"

"...I understand." Twilight nodded slowly. "So, now what?"

"We go down there and finish the job," I picked up my .45 SMG. "McGee, two other troopers, and I will fight off the remaining legionnaires while you and the rest of the troopers help free the captives. Stay close to each other and don't let them get a drop on you."

"You heard the man," McGee flicked the safety off of his service rifle. "Marlowe, Zane, you're with me and the Courier. Twilight, stay close to Sal, Kyle, and Li. Let's burn this camp to the ground and save some civvies."

I lead the charge towards the camp, all of us except Twilight were giving their best battle cries. Giving a quick glance over my shoulder, I could tell that Twilight looked frightened as we were slowly getting closer to the camp. She wasn't scared because she was going back into that camp, but because she was going to partake in a bloodbath. I almost felt bad for her because I'm sure she was never meant to see all this death and killing, but like what the Kings would say, "that's life in Freeside for you". But out in the wasteland, I would just simply say, "that's life for you in the Mojave".




"McGee!" I shouted, tearing apart the legionnaires behind cover with my .45 SMG. "Finish off the remaining legionnaires, I'm going to help cover Twilight and the rest of your men!"

"Copy that!" McGee replied as he loaded in another magazine in his gun and rolled behind a crate for cover. 

With my submachine gun running dry, I had no time to reload it, so I simply holstered it away and pulled out my scoped .44 magnum revolver. Twilight and one NCR trooper were doing their best to pick the lock and open the cage while the two other NCR troopers laid down covering fire. Some of the legionnaires that were pushed to the back of the camp managed to flank around behind some boxes and they were now charging towards Twilight and the three NCR troopers.

I saw five prime legionnaires rushing up towards them, all of them wielding machetes. Five successful shots to the head instantly did the job done. Another legionary began to rush up at me with his blade, but I managed to grab him and toss him to the ground, finishing him off with a bullet through his skull.

As I began to reload my revolver, I heard someone land behind me and that was when I realized that the veteran decanus, the leader of this camp had came down from the sniper tower and now had the advantage over me. I turned around to see him swing his machete towards me, which I skillfully dodged. Unfortunately for me, he managed to knock the revolver out of my hands, leaving me defenseless. 

"Ready to die, degenerate?" The veteran decanus readying his machete towards me.

Spotting a machete on the ground I grabbed it off the ground and began clashing blades with him. Now, I was pretty decent with guns, energy weapons, and sometimes explosive weapons like a Fat Man. But machetes, super sledges, and power fists are a bit out of my league. That wasn't to say I was bad in a sword fight or anything, but sometimes I can never tell if an enemy can be extremely skilled and dangerous when it came to melee weapons, and this decanus was proving to me that he was a force not to be reckoned with. I could probably clash blades with any legionnaire without a problem or even knock a super mutie off his feet with a super sledge, but this guy was probably the best Legion fighter I've ever faced in my life. Heck, he might as well be a legate by then.

This legionnaire was able to dodge, block, and counter my attacks as if it were nothing, but when he strikes back, it is just downright brutal. His attacks against my machete whenever I block was so strong that I was nearly knocked off balance a few times. When he swings his blade, all I see is a blur.

As we continued to clash blades, I was getting more and more exhausted from the fighting. Eventually, he managed to break my defense and I received a deep cut in my right shoulder. Normally, these shoulder pads on my armor would be enough to protect me from anything ranging from a .22 to a 5.56 round, even a machete cut. But this guy's blade somehow manage to cut through my armor like it was bighorner butter and make contact against my shoulder. I screamed in pain, clutching my shoulder tightly as blood began squirting out of my wound.

"Had enough?" The legionnaire taunted.

A deep slash in your shoulder like that and you would immediately die out from massive blood loss. It was a good thing I had stimpaks with me, they may be slow to heal you, but they can still seal up your wounds and make you feel good as new. I reached for a stimpak and jabbed it right into my shoulder. I groaned with complete relief as the healing effects of the stimpak did its work. I felt the cut in my shoulder close back up and it gave me the strength to ready my machete once again for another fight. I was still weakened from that last attack and the healing from the stim, but it didn't matter to me. I was going to take down this son of a bitch no matter what.

"No..." I replied tiredly. "Have you...had enough?"

I rushed up towards him with all my strength and I had managed to knock the machete out of his hands this time. I grinned to myself, thinking that I had the advantage as I was just about to finish him off. However, that slippery bastard managed to dodge my devastating blow I intended on delivering at the top of his head and then he pulls out his 12.7mm pistol and shoots me right in the leg. Fucking cheater.

I gave a pained cry as I fell to the ground holding my bleeding leg. Looking around, I saw that Twilight and the three NCR troopers had successfully freed the family from their cages and escorted them to safety while Sergeant McGee and two other troopers finishing off the remaining legionnaires at the back of the camp.

"Looks like...looks like you've lost..." I chuckled before I was kicked onto the ground by the camp leader. I gave an agonizing cry as he stepped on my wounded leg, causing more blood to come out of my wound. I looked up and saw the barrel of his gun now in front of my face.

"But pathetic though," the veteran decanus laughed. "The 'mighty' Courier couldn't defeat a legionnaire like me, just like the rest of the 'great' republic." 

I just lay there, looking down the barrel of his pistol as I awaited for a quick death. Despite where I was, I had to smile a bit because I knew for sure that even if I was killed right on the spot, I still won in the end. 

I'm not exactly what you would call a religious person by Joshua Graham standards, but I believe that when people do enough good things before they die, they end up in a better place in the afterlife. I know that up there, waiting for me is a place where there was no more pain and suffering. My parents and my little sister were all waiting for me, and perhaps after a long time, I can finally join them in a place of eternal happiness. Maybe at long last, I can finally get to know the truth about a few things.

All of a sudden, I heard this sort of whirring sound, growing louder and louder as it got closer. It sounded like a chainsaw was coming our way. The decanus was this close to putting a round into my skull when he lowered his gun and turned around to see what was coming. Even with his back changed to me, I could tell that he was all of a sudden frightened because of his sudden change in body language. He dropped his gun and had his arms raised as if he wanted to surrender. The tone of voice sounded scared than his usual taunting bravado he had before. 

"N-no!!!" The decanus cried, before he gave a guttural scream as the chainsaw sliced into his chest and lower abdomen. Blood and guts were spraying all over the place that eventually some droplets of blood ended up on my face. 

I laid there, completely stunned and disgusted as the legionnaire was continuously being sliced open in a  pretty gruesome manner. It went on like this for a couple of seconds until finally, the device stopped and the legionary's body fell right on top of me. Disgusted, I simply pushed the body away and looked up to see who my savior was. 

It was none other than the unicorn, Twilight Sparkle. She stood in front of me, eyes widened with shock and a horrified expression as though she had seen a ghost. She was levitating a chainsaw and her whole body was covered with blood. Not hers obviously, but the legionnaire's blood. That's when I realized, Twilight Sparkle, for the first time in her life, killed a person.




"Come on!" Twilight urged the family as the NCR soldiers began escorting them to safety. "This way, keep going!"

With the father the last one to exit the camp, Twilight and an NCR trooper by the name of Sal returned back to the camp to see if they can help out any of the troopers or the Courier. Sal all of a sudden pulled Twilight behind cover as he heard a loud cry of pain coming from the Courier. Peeking her head out, Twilight could see that the Courier was laying on the ground, presumed to be wounded by the Legion soldier who was standing in front of him, a gun pointed right at his head.

"We've got to do something, he's going to kill Bill!" Twilight pointed out.

"I'd love to, but I can't." Sal grunted, aiming his service rifle at the legionnaire. "If I shoot him, muscle spasm will cause him to shoot the Courier instead."

Twilight started looking around the camp for anything useful. There had to be something, anything she could use to distract the Legion soldier. She spied what seemed to be a chainsaw used by construction ponies back in her world. It laid beside a pile of fire wood just beside her. 

"I have an idea." Twilight said, picking up the chainsaw with her magic.

"What kind of an idea?" Sal asked, but he didn't need to ask any further as Twilight pulled the cord of the chainsaw, starting up the motor and powering up the device.

The chainsaw was heavy to use, but Twilight was able to muster enough strength to lift it up with her magic and walk towards the direction of where the Legion soldier and the Courier were. What she planned on doing was use the chainsaw to startle the legionnaire that he would jump out of the way, giving a chance for the Courier to get out of the way and crawl to safety. It was foolproof plan, or so she thought.

The legionnaire turned around to see Twilight approaching him. He raised his arms in horror as the blade from the chainsaw getting closer to him and uttered a terrified "No!" Twilight thought that the legionnaire would just jump out of the way like she hoped for. But he was rooted to the spot and before she could stop herself, the deed was already done. The razor blade brutally sliced into the legionnaire's body, tearing through his organs and slicing apart his innards. Twilight stood there, stunned, unsure what to do as the blade continuously sawed the man alive. Blood was sprayed all over her while some bits of guts landed in her mane until she finally had the brains to shut off the device before the blade drove any deeper into his body. The legionnaire was already dead when his body fell away from the chainsaw's blade and landed right on top of the Courier.




"I...I didn't mean to..." The violet aura glowing on her horn shut off and the chainsaw fell to the ground. Her eyes began welling up with tears. "I didn't mean to...to do that. I was...I was just going to scare him...that's all."

"Hey, Twi," I slowly got up. "It's alright, it was just a simple accident."

"No it isn't!" She cried. "I just...I just killed someone in cold blood. It wasn't even an accident to start off with..."

"Twilight..." I reached out a hand to comfort her, but she instantly swatted it away.

"Don't touch me," she backed away, sniffling. "Just...don't touch me."

She immediately turned her back on me and ran, brushing aside three of the NCR troopers and the family that she had rescued. One of the troopers dropped his rifle and ran after Twilight.

"Twilight!" I tried to stand up, but the pain in my wounded leg instantly gave way and I fell back on the ground. I gritted my teeth in pain and pounded the ground with a clenched fist. "Goddamn it!"

"Don't move," an NCR trooper knelt down beside me and pulled out a doctor's bag from his bag. "Let me patch you up first."

I resisted at first, but the pain in my leg was too much that I eventually gave up and allowed the NCR soldier to treat my wound. While he was treating my wounded leg, I started to feel bad for Twilight. From what I can tell through her emotion and personality, the world she came from was probably a peaceful place. A place where there was no war, no hatred, and no need to fight for survival. It's a kind of world that a lot of us wish to live forever in. Now, that world of hers was destroyed because of what this wasteland had to offer for her.




The aftermath of the battle was bloody and brutal. There were no NCR casualties and the captured family had managed to been saved without so much as a scratch. All Legion soldiers in the camp were dead, no prisoners had been taken. After their commander fallen, McGee and his men finished clearing the camp of any legionnaires. For once, I actually felt bad for them. Sure, they were evil, but some of these men were just people forced to die under Caesar's name after their town was raided or their tribe was assimilated into the Legion. I'm sure they didn't deserved to have a fate like this, but after how they've become monsters like they are now, there's nothing you can do but put them down. After all, monsters should just die, rather than cause more terror or harm on others.

I was currently being patched up by one of the NCR troopers. My shoulder suffered no damage after I quickly injected a stimpak into my shoulder so that should be fine, but it was best I give it a rest so that it can function better tomorrow. As for my leg, after a shot of Med-X, followed by a careful bullet removal with some tweezers, and a shot from a super stimpak, it was good to go.

"You should be fine," the NCR trooper said as he wrapped my shoulder up with a bandage. "Even though you took a stim, give this shoulder a rest and it should be working just fine by tomorrow. As for your leg, it should be fine after that super stimpak I gave you, but you'd better give it a rest as well."

"Yeah, thanks Doc." I muttered as I gave my shoulders a roll and stretch. 

I looked back at where I was and the legionnaire's body was still there. The appearance of his body, well, I would say it was quite disturbing. His chest all the way to his lower abdomen were cut open, revealing what was left of his organs and the sliced remains of his insides. I turned my head to see that the NCR trooper who had ran after Twilight after her outburst had brought her back to the camp. She sat on the crate, sobbing while the NCR trooper was doing his best to comfort her. 

I would probably need to have a 'sit-down-and-talk' moment with her, after we leave this camp, but for now, I was going to scavenge for whatever valuables and supplies I can find in this camp. Turning back to the camp, I already noticed that two of the NCR troopers had covered up that body of the sliced open legionnaire with a canvas. I was glad they did that. I did not need to have another good look at that body. 

I took whatever I could carry in that camp. There were some supplies left behind, but that was something the NCR could just deal with. By then, I  was nearly over encumbered, but I was still able to carry all of this. In one of the tents, I found a saddle bag with the star marking that I found tattooed on both sides of Twilight's flanks. I guessed this bag belonged to her. I was going to have to return it to her when we leave. I began to make my back to the front of the camp when Sergeant McGee stopped me and handed me a pouch of bottle caps. 

"We all owe you a huge thanks." McGee said. "Today, you and Twilight had just put a stop to one of the Legion's slave trading routes and without any NCR casualties. You know, the NCR could learn a thing or two from you. Heck, you should probably be the next president of the NCR."

"Thanks," I grinned with some hint of satisfaction. "But politics isn't really my thing. So what happens now?"

"My squad and I need to take the civilians to a safe place. The Mojave Outpost should be no problem for them. A few of my squad members will stay behind and wait for reinforcements to secure the camp by tonight." Sergeant McGee said. "You're welcome to join us back at the Outpost, otherwise you can head off to Primm and stay a night at our base there."

"I'm actually heading to Primm. I've got some errands to do there so I'll be fine there. Take care of yourself out there Sergeant." I extended my hand to him

"You too." He replied, shaking my hand. "And once again, thanks for the help today."

McGee turned his head over to see Twilight Sparkle sitting beside one of his troopers. She seemed to have calmed down by now. "Is she going to be okay?"

"She'll be fine." I said. "I'll just have a talk with her and then things will be alright. Due to her current situation, being stuck here and all, I guess I'll have to look after her for the time being."

"Then I wish the both of you good luck." Sergeant McGee said. "See you around."

With that, Sergeant McGee left. Two of them stayed behind to clean up the mess and wait for reinforcements to secure this place. I walked on over to Twilight, and the trooper looking after her politely excused himself to go help out the rest of his team while I was left to console Twilight. 

I sat down right beside her. None of us spoke a word for a while. Her body reeked slightly from the iron smell of blood.

I was the first to speak. "You okay?" 

She said nothing back to me. Looking closely at her mane, I noticed that there were bits of guts stuck in her mane. I brought my hand over to her mane and seeing how she was not resisting me, I began to gently brush away the remaining pieces of guts out. After her mane was brushed clear of any guts, I took out my sister's handkerchief and soaked it with some clean water. I gently took her head in my hands and I began cleaning off the blood stuck to her coat. As I was cleaning the blood off of her, I felt my hands began to dampen with her tears as she once more broke down and sobbed. She couldn't hold it in anymore.

I continued to wash off the blood while trying to console her at the same time. "It was a terrible accident, I get it. But if it wasn't for you, we'd probably wouldn't be sitting here, talking right now. In other words, all of us might have died if it weren't for you."

Twilight sniffled and wiped away her tears. "Is this something I'll have to get used to?"

I heaved a deep sigh. "I'm terribly sorry to say this, but yes. But don't worry, you'll get over it soon enough. You, uh, feeling better now?"

"I guess..." her voice sounded a bit uneasy.

After cleaning the blood off of her, I handed her back her bag. "I found it in one of the tents. Is this yours?"

She took the bag with her magic and examined it and its contents before giving a small smile. "Yes, it is. Thank you for finding it."

"Not a problem," I shrugged my knapsack on my shoulders. "So, you ready to get going?"

"Where to?" she jumped back onto her hooves, placing the saddle bag over herself. 

"A town called Primm. There's an NCR camp where we can stay for the night." I said. "We should get moving before it gets too dark.

"But uh, before we go, do you mind if you can carry some supplies for me?" I asked as I opened up my bag and pulled out some bottles of water and packaged food. "I'm kind of a bit over encumbered. If you don't want to, that's fine. I can just carry it all the way to Primm."

"No, no, I'd be glad to help you carry some things around." Twilight grabbed a few of the supplies in my hands and stored them away in her saddle bag.

I smiled warmly. "Thanks Twilight. You know, I think you and I might get along just well as traveling companions. Now let's get going, it's starting to get dark.”